My name is Steve Denis. I am a certified dog trainer covering Warrington & the North West.
I am a qualified and registered member of the Institute of Modern Dog Trainers and a graduate of the world renown SA Pro school by Julie Naismith.
I don’t train your dog. I train you.
I could train your dog but it wouldn’t help you as he still won’t behave how you want him to. His brain doesn’t work like that. If we train him, he will do what he thinks we want not what he thinks you want. We need to train you how to train your dog. It isn’t easy. It takes time. How often do your kids do everything you want? If they’re like mine, the answer is not often, and they speak English (or grunt if they’re 13 – 18).
Your dog doesn’t and never will speak English. There is no ‘Dog Language’ They use body language, they use barks and growls, they use eye contact and eye movement, they use smells and they leave smells – all to communicate. You’re going to have to learn some of that if you want your dog to understand you .
“Dogs are wolves, pack animals and they try to dominate us don’t they?…”
Actually, not so much – This theory was developed in the 1940’s and has since been proved to be meaningless. The trouble is. like many bad theories (immunisation of children causing autism) the damage has already been done and lasts for a long time. Here’s why dogs do not try to dominate us:
1. They aren’t wolves. For sure they descended from wolves but that was 40, 000 years ago. We descended from apes but when you argue with your partner do you pick up your own poo and throw it at them? Rarely we hope.
2. When the wolves were studied, the scientists got it wrong. The wolves were all strangers to each other and not in family groups as is their natural habitat. They didn’t behave as wolves normally behave.
3. Dominance theory as it is called has since been shown to be way off the mark by multiple scientific studies. Unfortunately it still has popular appeal as it is the basis for TV superstar trainers such as Cesar Millan who has cult like status amongst the sort of people who like cults.
4. When dogs live together in a group (wild or domestically) a hierarchy does indeed develop and some form of dominance will often take place. This is also normal human behaviour. When dogs live with humans (including groups of dogs) they look to the humans for leadership. They look for security, they look for care. They do not seek to dominate us. Not unless WE get the relationship really badly wrong.
It all depends on what you want.
Do you want a perfectly behaved dog who never gets anything wrong and knows that YOU ARE THE BOSS? Best thing we can suggest is that you close this site and find somebody else, because we can’t help you.
Dogs are alive, they learn and love. They grow in size and ability. They feel joy and fear. They are not machines which can be programmed and be set running. We love dogs with character. We love dogs who get things wrong. We love dogs who after 100 perfect repetitions of a task, will get number 101 wrong. Because it’s Tuesday.
What is ‘Force free training’?
Glad you asked. It’s simple. We don’t use any techniques which force the dog to do anything. We don’t do anything which causes pain and we don’t do anything which causes fear or distress.
We use food treats, toys, play and praise to motivate a dog to behave how we want. It is a science based approach based on up to date research which works with the dog not against him.
What to do next
If you need training for your dog, drop us a message with what the issues are and what your goals are for the training. If we have availability, we will set up a free Zoom or phone call, up to 30 minutes to discuss the issues you are having. If you are in Warrington, we may pop round to see you – still free. After that session we will provide a quote for training.
Why not fill in the form? For now it’s free!
99 Problems was founded and is run by Steve Denis, a certified and experienced force free dog trainer. Steve works with other force free professionals to provide a rounded full service of positive dog training.